The Runaway Warrior from Extra

Chapter 6: The Butcher of Juniperville (1)

I had declared my runaway with great confidence, but it wasn’t like I was just leaving for a day or two. Preparing to run away wasn’t something that could be done overnight.

I wanted to leave as soon as possible, but unfortunately, there was still one more Extra in our village whose identity had not been revealed.

"Emily, even though you're both Extras, you don't know each other well?"

"Not all Extras know each other, young master. You don’t remember everyone who passes by you either, do you?"

"But you weren’t like that, Emily."

"That's because I stand out a bit more."

Emily sighed as she ran her fingers through her red hair.

"Since nothing about possession has been revealed, we have to assume that anyone could end up like us."

"That's... kind of scary."

The thought of suddenly finding oneself in a completely different world, as a completely different person, was terrifying—for both the person possessed and the one being possessed.

"Then, on the flip side, is there anyone who seems like they could never be an Extra?"

"Hmm... I'm not sure. There's at least one person who seems absolutely not to be a possessed Extra. But I don't think they're related to this incident. They're the same age as you, so it's physically impossible for them to be the criminal."

Someone my age?

Juniperville was a small village with a shrinking population, so there weren’t many kids my age.

"Are you talking about Rena?"

"Yes, your childhood friend, Miss Renate."

"Yeah, Rena isn't an Extra. I played with her not too long ago."

I knew Rena well. After all, she was the childhood friend I ran into whenever I stepped outside.

"Hehe. If the young master says so, then it must be true. After all, the 'Heroine' is meant to be a childhood friend in true love scenarios."

"You're saying weird things again…."

Emily no longer bothered to hide her true identity. In fact, she seemed relieved, speaking freely in front of me and using terms only Extras would understand.

"But, Emily, is it really okay to talk like that?"

"Well... People might think I’m a bit strange, but we’re leaving soon anyway, so what does it matter?"

"But if they find out you're an Extra, won't it be dangerous?"

There were already people suspected of being Extras who had gone missing in the village.

Walter, the Dark Knight, might have been fine, but if Emily's identity was exposed, she could become the next target.

"Who knows? We don't even have a clue who's behind it anyway. It might actually be better if they make the first move. When that happens, I'll just whack them with a shovel!"

Emily began boasting about how she had dealt with the thief who broke into the mansion before, saying she had lured him into complacency with just a few words and then knocked him out with her shovel.

"...You've never actually killed anyone, right?"

"Oh my, I've never killed anyone. Never... probably."

"That's suspicious...."

A maid who was better with a shovel than with a comb—was that really okay?

Wait a minute.

"Huh? Now that I think about it, that thief was an Extra too, wasn’t he?"

"Oh, right! He said he ran out of travel money and had no choice but to steal... or something like that."

"...What happened to him?"

Surely she hadn’t buried him somewhere, had she?

"What do you mean? I handed him over to the guards. By now, he’s probably locked up in the underground prison."

"Really?"

"Yes. I captured him, and they were planning to slowly interrogate him later to find out his motives and plans. Even if I had questions of my own, I’m just a regular maid. What could I do?"

She was right. She wasn’t the owner of the mansion, just a servant. It would have been strange for her to interact with a captured thief. It would have been suspicious. But—

"That’s not the case now, is it?"

"Oh? You’re right."

"……."

It might have been a problem if Emily were alone, but since I was the master of the house, I could simply give permission. And if needed, I could even send Walter in her place.

"Go and check it out."

"Yes~"

I wanted to go myself to prepare for my runaway, but unfortunately, I was still grounded.

Moreover, if my mother found out I had visited the prison, my punishment would only be extended.

So I sent Emily on the errand and waited for news while doing my studies for the day.

Not long after, what she brought back was...

"...He’s dead."

All we got was a clue that this Extra was a very dangerous person.

***

Extras were dying or going missing.

"The guards said he probably died from food poisoning, but...."

"If he was a thief, they probably didn’t care much. At best, they’d just cut off his hand as punishment."

For thieves, the usual punishment was to cut off a hand so they could never steal again.

If the wound got infected and he died, they’d probably just think of it as getting rid of a troublemaker and cover it up quietly.

Only we knew that his death was related to the disappearance cases.

Then what about the other missing people?

We didn’t know if they were dead or alive, but one thing was certain.

The culprit was killing other Extras without mercy.

"They must think it's a nuisance. They believe they're the only one who should know the future."

Walter came to that conclusion.

"...That’s a complete psychopath!"

"Who knows? Maybe, like me before, they’ve been completely swallowed by their character."

"No way. This village is supposed to be full of kind and simple people. That's why I risked my life to come here!"

"Hmm? Was there such a setting?"

"Of course! It's in the official setting book!"

"An official... setting book?"

"Yeah? I got it in the deluxe edition. The limited edition came with everything."

"I’ve never even heard of a limited edition. Don’t tell me…."

Was there something only Extras could discuss? The two began a serious conversation about 'settings' that only they seemed to understand.

"Are you talking about the remake of that trashy, no, re-licensed version?"

"Huh? What else would I be talking about?"

"...Of course, the original. What else?"

"Come on, I wasn’t even born when the original came out... huh?"

Suddenly, as if realizing something, Emily's eyes wavered with anxiety, while Walter ground his teeth, looking like he was about to explode.

"...How old are you?"

"W-Why does age matter? We’re both in the same possessed situation!"

"Oh my god... You’ve been pretending to know the original all this time? What a disgrace!"

"S-Shut up, old man! It’s not like I wanted this! I was just trying to get views from you original fans, with all your drama and...!"

"Streaming... You mean you were an internet streamer? I’ve been dealing with this clueless...!"

"Yeah~ Must be nice being an old geezer!"

"You little...!"

"Oh dear, with your old age and fading memory, will you even be of help in the future? Actually, since I know all the latest settings and remember the gameplay vividly, I’m much better!"

"Grr... I have more gameplay experience. I was such a fan that I collected every series."

"What? Then you must have bought the remake too, right?"

"...I couldn’t last even an hour."

"Ah! Wait, then who’s the real noob here? If this is a remake possession, aren’t you the game ignoramus? Is that why you got possessed into a minor mob character for just an hour?"

"Gaaah...!"

The first round of the verbal battle between Walter and Emily ended in Emily’s victory.

I didn’t fully understand, but it seemed that I should ask Walter about the game and Emily about the settings in the future.

"Anyway, who do you think the culprit is?"

"If they could quietly deal with a prisoner in a cell and cover it up, there aren't many possibilities."

Where had the missing people gone, leaving no trace?

The number of disappearances wasn’t large, but the situation was undoubtedly strange.

Incomprehensible things were happening, and people were vanishing.

With things at this level, it wouldn’t be surprising for an official investigation to start, considering the possibility of a terrifying being like a Dark Knight or a witch plotting something.

So why weren’t the villagers paying much attention?

Was it because all the missing people were outsiders, not locals?

No. Even if they had noticed something suspicious, they couldn’t speak out carelessly.

"The Fraune family is the most suspicious."

After all, they were the ruling family of Juniperville.

***

"Sid, this time, tell me about the Eight Virtues of Argentain, the land of chivalry where we live."

"Yes. The Eight Virtues of Argentain are 'Honor', 'Courage', 'Justice', 'Mercy', 'Devotion', 'Diligence', 'Temperance', and 'Honesty'."

Knights upheld virtues. The same was true for Argentain, known as the land of chivalry.

"Then, what are the virtues of a knight among them?"

"Honor, Courage, Justice, and Mercy. These are commonly referred to as the Four Virtues of Chivalry."

"What about the remaining four virtues?"

"The remaining virtues are the virtues of the subjects, meant for commoners and serfs rather than knights."

Knights upheld honor, fought enemies courageously, governed justly, and showed mercy.

Subjects remained loyal to their lords, worked diligently, did not indulge in luxury and pleasure, and never lied.

In short, knights always had to be honorable, and if one wanted to remain a knight, honor was the one thing they could never lose.

On the other hand, could a subject who must be loyal and never lie accuse their lord of dishonor?

"Then why are the virtues, which are precious to all humans, divided by status?"

"Because fulfilling one's duties according to their given status and talents is the ideal of a nation."

"But it seems that other countries do not agree with Argentain's thinking. Why is that?"

"Because virtues can change with time and circumstances, they are Nomos, not Physis. Unlike Physis, which is unchanging from the start, virtues are the path and method to reach the 'Idea of Goodness' and exist only as a means, not as the Idea itself."

Of course, this was merely a philosophy and governance method unique to Argentain.

"Good. If virtue can change, does that mean there is a hierarchy among virtues?"

"Uh..."

Was courage on the battlefield greater than a parent's love?

Or could you say they held the same value despite being in entirely different situations?

"Moreover, virtues like love and courage have been valued across all ages. Couldn’t virtues like these be an unchanging Physis?"

"That’s... ."

None of this was covered in what I had studied so far.

"This is your assignment for next time. Prepare both your answer and the opposing argument."

"Ugh...."

"What did you say just now?"

"I studied so hard...."

Instead of praise, I got more homework. How could this be?

When my mother saw my resentful expression, she instinctively reached out to me but hesitated and spoke.

"...Oh, you did well today. Even during your confinement, you didn’t neglect your studies."

"Then?"

"Your confinement ends today. Sid, you may now enjoy your free time."

"Thank you!"

At the mention of free time, I gave my mother a hug and dashed outside.

"Sniff... A harsh debate class that defies a mother’s love—the secret of the gifted education method coveted by the passionate moms of Daechi-dong...!"

Emily greeted me with her usual nonsense as if she had been waiting for the class to end.

"Emily, I’m not grounded anymore!"

"See? I told you so, didn’t I?"

"Yeah."

"The princess only acts strict because of her educational policy. In truth, she cares about you deeply."

The last pose where I looked up at my mother with teary eyes was something Emily had insisted I practice.

"I know."

I was used to it now, but when my education had just started, my mother had made many mistakes. She would call me "baby" in a formal tone or, like earlier, immediately revert to her old self and apologize whenever I looked downcast.

If she heard I suddenly ran away, she would surely be worried and heartbroken.

But on the other hand, if I didn’t run away, my mother, Joseph, Leopold, and everyone I cared about in the mansion would be in danger. The main storyline started with my family’s death.

To change the predestined future, I first had to change my past actions.

For that, I needed to become stronger. Strong enough to protect everyone.

And if I left this place, the one who might pose the greatest danger to my family was the Extra behind this incident.

"Then, let’s go."

With my final farewells and preparations made, I headed to the lord's castle with Emily and Walter.